E. M. Shoemaker Postdoctoral Fellowship Program

The Shoemaker Fellowship, funded through NASA Planetary Geology and Geophysics (PG&G), is a two-year rotational position, stationed at the USGS Astrogeology Science Center (ASC) in Flagstaff, Arizona.The E.M. Shoemaker Postdoctoral Fellowship Program provides an opportunity for postdoctoral fellows to conduct concentrated research in association with selected members of the USGS Astrogeology Science Center scientific and technical staff, often as a final element to their formal career preparation. The ASC makes a commitment to the NASA PG&G Program to select and mentor a promising young planetary scientist who is just starting their career. Under the supervision of an Astrogeology staff scientist (selected on the basis of subject matter expertise), the Shoemaker Fellow is encouraged to develop an independent research program and to contribute substantively to the national planetary science community. For two years, the Shoemaker Fellow becomes a member of the USGS ASC and he/she is expected to attend research meetings to present and discuss ideas and opportunities. Manuscripts and proposals are prepared and then reviewed by the supervisor and other knowledgeable ASC members. Interactions with scientists and technical staff within the ASC are encouraged and fostered.

Past Shoemaker Fellows

(1997-99) Dr. Jeffery R. Johnson, became well-integrated into both PG&G and Astrogeology research by publishing several papers, serving on planetary advisory groups and flight mission teams, and securing independent funding through his own research proposals. Dr. Johnson was a permanent staff member of the USGS/Astrogeology Team and was selected in late 2007 as the Astrogeology Team Chief Scientist.

(2000-2002) Dr. Matthew Staid. Staid was productive in planetary science research as a funded PG&G investigator, and was a team member of the Moon Mineralogical Mapper experiment as part of the Chandrayaan-1 mission to the Moon (C. Pieters, PI). He is currently self-employed in the terrestrial remote sensing industry.

(2002-2004), Dr. Devon Burr, is currently a planetary geomorphologist and an Associate Professor in the Earth and Planetary Sciences Department at the University of Tennessee Knoxville.

(2005-2007), Dr. Jeff Byrnes, had a research emphasis on planetary volcanic processes as interpreted by analysis of terrestrial analog and planetary remote sensing data. He is currently a tenure-track professor in the Boone Pickens School of Geology at Oklahoma State University.

(2007-2009), Dr. Renee Weber, worked on modeling and interpretation of Apollo seismic data and expanded her research into image-based remote sensing techniques and analysis for the Moon and Mars. She is now at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center.